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Lexus USA has reported 30,607 total sales for December 2012, a 25.4% improvement over last year — here are the numbers, model-by-model:

MONTH

Year to Date (*DSR)

2012

2011

% CHG*

2012

2011

% CHG*

CT

1,598

2,259

‐26.5

17,673

14,381

22.9

HS

2

274

‐99.2

649

2,864

‐77.3

IS

2,497

3,629

‐28.5

27,708

29,669

‐6.6

ES

7,987

4,882

69.9

56,158

40,873

37.4

GS

2,796

194

1396.7

22,160

3,746

491.6

LS

1,286

1,056

26.5

8,345

9,568

‐12.8

SC

0

0

N/A

2

18

-88.9

LFA

6

10

‐37.7

46

62

‐25.8

Total Cars

16,172

12,304

36.5

132,741

101,181

31.2

RX

12,534

11,508

13.1

95,381

82,595

15.5

GX

1,407

1,219

19.9

11,039

11,609

‐4.9

LX

494

324

58.3

5,005

3,167

58.0

Total Trucks

14,435

13,051

14.9

111,425

97,371

14.4

Total Sales

30,607

25,355

25.4

244,166

198,552

23.0

Please note, all percentages are calculated by the Daily Sales Rate (DSR), which takes into account the number of days in the month that dealerships could sell cars. December 2012 had 26 selling days, December 2011 had 27 selling days.

Sales in December were lead by the ES & RX — 25% of ES sales were hybrids, and the RX had its second best sales month ever. The GS, LS & LX all followed with strong numbers, with the annual December to Remember sales event making a big impact on the overall numbers.

With December in the books, we can also look at the year as a whole — how did Lexus stack up against its primary competitors in 2012? Here are the numbers:

BMW: 281,460 units sold, a 14% increase over 2011

Mercedes: 274,134 units sold, a 12% increase over 2011

Lexus: 244,166 units sold, a 23% increase over 2011

Audi: 139,310 units sold, a 18.5% increase over 2011

By volume, Lexus was the fastest growing luxury brand in 2012 — in fact, the 23% increase is the largest year-over-year jump since 1998.

Canada

With 1,165 sales in December, Lexus Canada celebrated its second best year ever with 15,101 units sold in 2012.

The GS 350 was a major success, with 869 units sold — a 662.3% over 2011 and the model’s best year ever. The CT also set a new sales record with 1,640 units sold.

Comments

Lexus definitely opened up a can of whupp--- on the market, with the ES showing an old-school level of dominance, at almost 8k to close the year. The LS closed strong, the RX approached 100k, the GS easily beat Infiniti M and Audi A6, and the CT showed a nice increase.
Even the Lexus LX had a big year. 5k sales at $80k+ is not chicken feed. That's a player!
A full year with the all-new ES, and renewed LS, plus the all-new Lexus IS should boost sals again in 2013.
The future's so bright......I gotta smoke a cigarette!
BD

I'm anxious to see how 2013 shapes up with the whole line-up being revamped!I'm seeing lots of new releases around my area which is pretty amazing,considering that I'm pretty rural & an hour & a half drive away from the nearest Lexus dealer.I think Lexus stands a pretty good chance of reclaiming it's crown this year.

What I see from these models in 2013:
CT: 20k (Needs a gas engine, or Camry's hybrid, to increase sales)
ES: 70k (should get about 6k a month consistently)
GS: 25k (2k a month. They should establish a solid lease program by now)
LS: 9-10k
RX: 90-95k
GX: 10k
LX: 5k
All-New IS: I'm hearing it will come out around Summer, so the first half of the year will be slow, at about 15k, but the 2nd half should double that, so 45k
Total: 255-260k
Whenever they start selling the NX CUV, then they can threaten 300k annually
BD

am so proud of Lexus not even at full capacity they did great now for a year with the ES IS LS GS LX RX and hopefully a spindle GX and RC and new Halo car Lexus has a bright future I would like Toyota to Kill Scion and Focus and putting the youth into Lexus like developing F CARS.. am so proud of everyone I think MB cars are overprice but ok

With so many new models and modifications and so much of buzz around, I am surprised to see they did not beat BMW/MB numbers. I am disappointed with Lexus. MB is just all crap IMO and BMW is too expensive to maintain.

A couple of key intangibles are working against Lexus.
1. Lexus' lineup is old compared to the competition, but that will change over the next year
2. Lexus just doesn't sell the number of models the Germans do. BMW floods this market with 50+ models. Lexus sells 12? 15 models?
3. Incentives. The Germans are big on throwing cash on the hood. Lexus will not match incentive deals with the Germans. BMW will discount 750i over $10k to make a deal.....
Lexus really needs a gas engine in the CT, and that NX CUV to get their volume to class-leading levels.
BD

for #1 - I think this needs to change asap. The average age of a lexus owner is over 50 (correct me if I am wrong).
I agree to #2.
#3 - I think people who buy lexus or any other luxury car aren't looking for an incentive compared to a nissan/ford customer. Btw, I was reading in consumers report that 750i is the worst sedan to own (just a fyi).

People with money like to get "a good deal" just as much as anyone else. That's what Lexus built their business on over 20 years ago.
If you have a lot of money/credit, you didn't get it by doing a lot of bad deals, and paying more than you could elsewhere.
The Germans throw a lot of money at custmoers for only one reason. Because it works. It's not great for profit margins, but...
BD

Agreed. The NX will be a must to expand the lineup and beat the Germans on overall sales volumes. So much for a late 2013 release now that the '13 RAV4 is out... but there is still hope for a 2014 release as possibly a '15 model?

LEXUS will regain the crown in 2013......new product and revamped existing will continue to drive the sales.....the future is certainly very positive in so many directions that LEXUS is headed. One thing that really amazes me is the power that LEXUS has with only 12-15 models compared with the BMW and MB 45-50 plus line up and so many engine variants.....to me this shows what an extremely loyal, driven fan base mixed with superior product,value and resale can generate.....simply the BEST !

I would like to know what other new models we will see from Lexus 2013 - beside the new IS sedan we already know it will come. As we can read on "krews" outstanding website the new small SUV is "on hold". Cóupes will come but no one knows when! RX with 3rd row option - yes no??

Nothing else this year. All the sedans will have been redone by mid-year. An all-new LS is about 2 years away. The RC350 is also early 2014, from all sources.
The next-generation of SUV should start to appear in 2014, most likely led by the NX in early 2014, and a double-shot of the RX later in 2014.
I see the RX with a 3rd row replacing the GX, which has been a disappointment. They dropped the ball when it came to the HPX Concept many years ago. That should have been the success story the Mercedes GL is today.
A double-wide RX, if you will, would sell in big numbers, but again, is almost 2 years away.....
BD